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Nagamine was born in Tomari, in Naha, Okinawa. He was a small and sickly child, and he contracted a gastroenteric disorder in 1926, his second year of high school. He began a self-imposed diet and took up karate under the watchful eye of his next-door neighbour, Chojin Kuba. Nagamine soon became a picture of good health, crediting his recovery to "hard work both at school and training of Karate"[1]. His health improved to such an extent that he became a leader of the school's karate club, and his friends dubbed him Chippaii Matsu, a nickname meaning "tenacious pine tree".

Nagamine retired as a policeman in 1952, and in 1953 he returned to Naha City and set up his own dojo, which he named "Matsubayashi-Ryu Kodokan Karate and Ancient Martial Arts Studies". From the dojo he taught Matsubayashi-ryu, a karate school he had invented in 1947, and named in honour of Sokon Matsumura and Kosaku Matsumora. He continued to teach the discipline until his death in 1997. He was succeeded by his son, Takayoshi Nagamine,who was the head (sōke) of Matsubayashi-ryu until his own death in 2012.

Nagamine wrote two books in Japanese, The Essence of Okinawan Karate-Do and Tales of Okinawa's Great Masters. The Essence of Okinawan Karate-Do, which has been reprinted many times, was first published in the English language in 1976. This was translated into the English language by Nagamine's student Katsuhiko Shinzato. Tales of Okinawa's Great Masters received its first English translation in 2000; this was translated into the English language by Patrick McCarthy [Bubishi].